Someone tried to donate a grenade launcher to Goodwill

Mar 31, 2018 3:01 AM PDT

1 minute read

SUMMARY

Okay, let’s imagine you’re going through your stuff to see what you want to donate to charity. First, there’re the old clothes that you haven’t worn in a while. Then there’s that kettlebell sitting in the corner from your last effort to get in …

Okay, let's imagine you're going through your stuff to see what you want to donate to charity. First, there're the old clothes that you haven't worn in a while. Then there's that kettlebell sitting in the corner from your last effort to get in shape. And finally, there's the grenade launcher…

Don't laugh — a grenade launcher was donated to a Florida Goodwill shop, according to ABC7.com. When the employees realized what they had, they called the police. Explosive ordnance disposal experts rendered the situation safe.

A spokesman for the Manatee County Sheriff's Office told WATM that what had been donated was "an airsoft grenade launcher used primarily for paintball." The spokesman, Dave Bristow, admitted that he had no idea what the launcher's ultimate fate would be. A UPI report indicated the launcher resembled the M203 grenade launcher.

Aviation ElectronicÕs Technician 3rd Class Awail Hassen loads a high explosive point detonated 40MM grenade round into an M203 grenade launcher during a live-fire exercise on the fantail of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76). (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Gary Prill/Released)

However, this isn't the only time armaments have surfaced where you might not expect them to. One former Marine recounted how the staff of Tierrasanta Elementary School, which opened in 1974, ended up on a first-name basis with the members of various local explosive ordnance units. The school had been built on an impact area in the former Camp Elliot, where the 2nd Marine Division had been training. Thirty years after the war, kids would find unexploded bazooka rounds and grenades and bring them in for show-and-tell.

The list doesn't stop there. In 2016, Hurricane Matthew unearthed a number of Civil War-era cannonballs. Army explosive ordnance disposal personnel from Joint Base Lewis-McChord also had to deal with Civil War munitions in 2015. That same year, Air Force EOD personnel from Mountain Home Air Force Base dealt with a 150-year-old battlefield souvenir that became a family heirloom.

This Civil War-era round was discovered in Washington state in 2015, then rendered safe via controlled detonation by Army EOD personnel. (U.S. Army photo)

Uncovered UXO has been far more common in Europe, with significant finds cropping up in both the United Kingdom and Germany in 2017. BALTOPS naval exercises have repeatedly uncovered UXO during mine countermeasures exercises in 2009, 2011, and 2012.

Should you come across UXO, a slight modification of the four rules of the National Rifle Association's Eddie Eagle program makes sense: Stop, don't touch, get away, and call police.